What Are Some Questions Likely to Show up on a Correctional Officer Test?

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Quick Answer

Likely questions on a correctional officer test include “What is the present occupancy rate of a 555-bed facility that only has 333 inmates booked?” and “What is the officer-to-inmate ratio of a facility with 1221 inmates and one-third as many officers?” Tests for correctional officers hired in various jurisdictions differ slightly, but the Texas Department of Criminal Justice correctional officer pre-employment test covers five parts: memory and observation, situational reasoning, reading comprehension and deductive reasoning, verbal reasoning, and arithmetic.

Other questions that may appear on a correctional officer test include “What should you do in the case of a prisoner who is unconscious and might be having a heart attack?” “An inmate is entitled to have his rights read to him in which situation?” and “What is the purpose of a shadow board?”

Correctional officer tests may be computer-based, online or written. Many correctional officer tests ask the job candidates to briefly look at a picture, and once the picture is removed, to answer questions about its detail. Another test component is reading comprehension, where the job candidate is asked to read a short excerpt and then answer questions about its content.

Math is very important for a potential correctional officer, since keeping an accurate total count of inmates is crucial to the safety and security of a correctional institution. Because of this, some correctional officer tests have a timed math component.